Category: GENRE
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Soul [2020] ★★★½
No surprises there: Disney/Pixar just delivered yet another knockout. This wonderful movie from the same people who gave us “Up” and “Inside Out” have done it again. “Soul” is a masterclass in animated features, a deeply touching journey that will resonate with adults even more so than kids. In true Pixar fashion, we follow the…
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The Midnight Sky [2020] ★½
I rarely say this about any movie, but I truly struggled to finish “The Midnight Sky”, Netflix’s latest Science-Fiction film directed by and starring Georges Clooney. He plays a lone scientist whose sole purpose is to warn a crew of astronauts about a global catastrophe. Or something like that. The film is all over the…
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Happiest Season [2020] ★★½
Christmas season is all about watching movies about family gatherings, which makes “Happiest Season” ideal for the occasion. It’s not perfect by any means, but it has enough charm and just the right actors to carry it through. Mackenzie Davis plays a young woman who agrees to bring her girlfriend (Kristen Stewart) to her family’s…
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Mank [2020] ★★★½
I haven’t seen many great films this year, but “Mank” is certainly one of them. For one, it paints an evocative picture of old Hollywood, circa 1940, a time where Orson Welles was preparing for his next feature: “Citizen Kane”. For that, he’s going to hire an unlikely candidate to write the script: screenwriter Herman…
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Hillbilly Elegy [2020] ★★½
Want to spend some time with a dysfunctional family? Probably not. But get this: even when it goes off the rails, “Hillbilly Elegy” features a pair of terrific performances that are worth the price of admission alone (don’t believe the critics, the film isn’t all that bad either). Amy Adams and Glenn Close play mother…
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The Crown: Season 4 [2020] ★★★½
I have been a huge fan of Netflix’s “The Crown” for almost 3 years now. The show has been consistent right from the start, and it gave us plenty to cheer for: lavish sets, beautiful costumes, terrific acting, and a masterful direction. Now that season 4 is finally here, I can happily report that the…
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On The Rocks [2020] ★★½
You can think of Sofia Coppola’s “On The Rocks” as an old-fashioned star vehicle, tailor-made for Bill Murray’s larger than life persona. As such, it’s so easy to watch and lightly enjoyable, despite a paper-thin story. Rashida Jones plays a married woman who is almost convinced that her husband (Marlon Wayans) is having an affair.…
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The Trial Of The Chicago 7 [2020] ★★★
I love courtroom dramas and I love legendary writer Aaron Sorkin. So what do you get when you fuse the two together? Fireworks. That’s “The Trial of the Chicago 7” in a nutshell, a completely absorbing, high octane courtroom drama that hardly misses a beat. Sorkin also directs here, and he has assembled a first-rate…
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The Queen’s Gambit [2020] ★★★½
I know almost nothing about chess. It’s a game that I briefly played when I was younger but never truly picked up again. And yet, I fell in love with “The Queen’s Gambit”, Netflix’s latest limited series that hits all the right notes. How is that possible? Making chess a subject of compelling drama for…
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Holidate [2020] ★★
Star power can save a movie from being a complete waste of time. Case in point: “Holidate”, Netflix’s latest rom-com starring Emma Roberts and Luke Bracey. They play two strangers completely fed up with the pressure of having a date on every holiday, so they decide to be each other’s “plus 1” throughout the year,…
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Rebecca [2020] ★★½
Let’s address the elephant in the room right away: this version of Daphe Du Maurier’s classic book is stylish and well-shot, but it’s nowhere near as good or memorable as Alfred Hitchcock’s 1940 masterpiece (which won an Oscar for Best Picture and propelled Hitch to Hollywood stardom). So yes, this 2020 Netflix movie has some…
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Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm [2020] ★★½
In a year plagued with uncertainties, the last thing I expected to see was a sequel to 2006’s hit “Borat”. But here’s the thing: when he’s not being a complete goofball, Sacha Baron Cohen’s character tackles subjects that couldn’t be more relevant in today’s society, from the US elections to Covid-19 itself. I wasn’t a…
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The Haunting Of Bly Manor [2020] ★★★½
Many will say that “The Haunting of Bly Manor” isn’t like “The Haunting of Hill House”, but it doesn’t have to be. This is a new story in a new house, and if you’re anything like me, you’ll find it just as captivating as its predecessor. And yes, I binged the hell out of it…
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The Boys In The Band [2020] ★★★
This hidden gem from Netflix is based on a Pulitzer prize-winning play from the 1960’s that still resonates even in 2020. I do suspect that no screen adaptation can do any stage play justice, but with a cast that features Jim Parsons, Zachary Quinto, Matt Bomer, Andrew Rannells and Robin De Jesus, the end result…
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Hubie Halloween [2020] ★½
After his unforgettable performance in last year’s “Uncut Gems”, Adam Sandler goes back to his old, silly self in Netflix’s latest Halloween comedy “Hubie Halloween”. Sandler plays the good-hearted Hubie Dubois, a man devoted to his hometown of Salem. Hubie also happens to love Halloween so much, and this s obviously a setup for a…
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Enola Holmes [2020] ★★½
While far from being great, there’s still something charming and irresistible about “Enola Holmes”, Netflix’s answer to the “Sherlock Holmes” franchise. It helps that it moves at a fast pace. It also helps to have Millie Bobby Brown (“Stranger Things”) as Enola, Sherlock’s younger sister who also happens to be a sleuth in the making.…
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The Devil All The Time [2020] ★★★
This gritty film from writer director Antonio Campos is one of the finest things you’ll stream on Netflix this year. One story links to another as we follow the journey of a young man (Tom Holland) and the bizarre characters that inhabit a small town in West Virginia. The movie is about many things, but…
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The Paramedic [2020] ★★
In this generic Spanish thriller, Mario Casas plays a paramedic who, after a tragic accident that left him paralyzed, begins to suspect that his girlfriend is cheating on him. This is a setup for a cat and mouse game (think Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rear Window”, with Casas wheelchair bound), that sadly leads nowhere. Casas is menacing…
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Cuties [2020] ★
Believe everything being said about this movie, and consider this a public service announcement: “Cuties” is difficult to watch and even more difficult to defend. I don’t usually mind “cautionary tales”, but there is nothing cautionary about this film. The backlash started when a clip from the movie was shared on social media, showing a…
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Everybody Knows [2018] ★★★
I read somewhere that this movie was a “disappointing step back” for writer director Asghar Farhadi. But how do you top movies like “A Separation”, “The Past” and “The Salesman”? “Everybody Knows” may not be Farhadi’s best and most compelling work, but it has an intriguing story to tell and just the right actors to…
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